We're Only Human
by More-Than-Little-One
Summary: Katie, the younger sister of Blaine Anderson, begins her first year at WMHS. The road isn't easy, there are good times and bad, but we're only human after all. Where does Puck fit into the mix? Read and find out!
1. Chapter 1

Human: Chapter 1

There are always times when you reflect and ask, "why me?" or "why now?" or "why is it always the good people?" I'm not sure that there is ever an answer for these questions, or at least never an answer that is good enough to keep the thoughts at bay. I always think, "What did I do to deserve living a life with diabetes?" or "why were my parents the ones to suffer?" My parents were taken from me and my brothers two years ago by a drunk driver. Thankfully, my oldest brother Cooper was old enough at the time to take guardianship of me and my other brother Blaine. My name is Katie, this is my story of my life with my two older brothers and just trying to make it through high school in the tiny town of Lima, Ohio.

One thing that my brothers and I have in common is that we all perform. Whether it is through music, theatrical performances, or sports, we all excel. Cooper is definitely one for theatrics. He still acts in commercials, although he says it's to pay bills, I know that isn't true with the money mom and dad had in savings. We live a pretty comfortable life, especially for a bunch of kids living on our own. We take care of each other though. Blaine performs musically; singing and through instruments. He is amazing if I don't say so myself. Blaine is also gay and has an incredible boyfriend Kurt. They have been together for over a year now. I know mom and dad would be proud of the man that he has become. I am huge into soccer. I have been playing for as long as I can remember. It's always been an outlet of mine, especially when everything seems out of my control. Control over that soccer ball was mine. I chose when and where to kick it, and who I passed it to was up to me. It was also a place that I could release stress, anger, and aggression legally and without consequence. There is one thing that seems like it is always out of my control and that's diabetes. I am a type 1 diabetic, meaning that my body relies on insulin to survive since my body can't produce it on its own.

I was diagnosed with diabetes when I was ten years old, four years ago. Although most days I feel like I have it under control, there are always some days that no matter what I do, or how perfectly I time meals with insulin administration, I'm either too high or too low. It becomes a lose-lose situation. When our parents died, I wanted to die with them. I was only 12 years old at the time, Blaine was 14, and Cooper 22. I thought that if I ignored being diabetic, I could be with mom and dad sooner. Fortunately, I have two amazing brothers looking out for me, otherwise I would have been with my parents sooner rather than later. I just gave up. Soccer was no longer intriguing, I talked to nobody unless I had to, and my brothers took over the process of testing by blood sugar and giving me insulin shots. I have come out of that hole, but it hasn't been easy. Things like my insulin pump that I got last year has helped when dealing with the multiple needle pricks that I had to endure day in and day out. Now, most of the needles are due to testing my blood sugar. I have thrown myself into soccer and my studies. I am getting ready to start my freshman year of high school at WMHS with Blaine.

I have to admit, I am nervous. Many new people, new environment, and a new soccer team (try outs were over the summer so I already knew that I had made the team). A new school also meant new students, more eyes looking at me like I'm a freak, and attention that I never asked for nor wanted. Blaine keeps trying to assure me that everything is going to be fine, but I'm not so sure. I guess I'm about to find out.

"Katie. Katie, it's time to wake up." I felt someone nudging my shoulder and I recognized that voice.

"Coop, why are you waking me up?" I asked, still groggy from my nights sleep, restless at best.

"It's time to get ready for school. Test your sugar so I know what to get ready for you for breakfast while you are getting ready." Oh ya, it's the first day of high school.

"Alright, alright, I'm up." I replied while opening the drawer of my bedside table and pulling out my meter. After pricking my finger and loading blood onto the testing strip, I waited for the meter to result. The number 70 flashed back at me. On the low side but not incredibly uncommon. I adjusted the amount of insulin being delivered through my pump until I was ready for breakfast.

"Well?" Cooper asked.

"I'm at 70, Coop. I'm going to hop in the shower and get ready for school. I have practice after classes today too. Would you mind fixing oatmeal and some orange juice for breakfast and throw some snacks into my soccer bag just in case I need them later?"

"Sure Shorty, anything in particular for your snacks or just the usual?"

"Just the usual will be fine. I think Blaine has glee practice today too so I will just come home with him after school."

"Sounds like a plan, I'm going to get Blaine out of bed, again, I swear that boy is one of the worst people to try waking up in the morning."

Once Cooper left my room, I threw my blankets off of me, grabbed my clothes for the day, and hit the bathroom to shower. Track pants and simple t-shirt was my usual attire, and nothing changed in that because it was the first day of school. I reattached my insulin pump at the insertion site on my abdomen and slid the pump itself into my pant pocket. Another day, ready to go. Grabbing my backpack from my bedroom floor, I headed down the stairs to the kitchen for breakfast. As promised by my loving brother, Coop had my breakfast sitting on the table for me.

"Thanks, Coop, this looks awesome." I told him, thankful I didn't have to wake up even earlier to cook in the morning. Blaine entered the kitchen as I sat down at the table.

"Morning Shorty, you ready for your first day?" Blaine asked, clearly excited for another school year. You're probably asking yourself why my brothers keep calling me Shorty. Well, quite frankly, I'm short, only standing at 4'10'', not many people my age are under 5 feet tall. So I guess it's rather fitting and my brothers will never let me forget it.

"I guess so, just another day of school, only it's a different school. Same things though. I am however, actually excited for soccer practice through. Can't wait to start playing against people of a higher level," I replied. While I continued to eat, Blaine ate and finished getting ready. I finished eating quickly and ran upstairs to make sure I had everything packed for my day. I threw my meter in my back pack. _"I need to check my sugar again right before class starts, " _I thought to myself. The last thing I needed was to be hypoglycemic all day, especially when it's time for practice. My brothers have been really good about not pestering me all the time about checking my blood sugar. They know that I have it under control. They will step in if they think I'm high or low or I'm sick. Other times, it's mainly out of anger that I choose to ignore it or be belligerent about it.

"See you later, Coop!" I hollered out while running out the door with back pack and soccer bag in hand, heading out to Blaine's car. Blaine jumped in and we were off. "_McKinley High, ready or not, here I come,"_ I thought to myself.


	2. Chapter 2

Human: Chapter 2

We arrived all too quickly. I sat there a minute, trying to gain my baring, while feeling Blaine's eyes on me at the same time. _Am I really ready for this? Is it a good idea attending the same school as my brother? Why wouldn't it be? Will I be seen as a freak here too?_ So many questions were going through my head it was beginning to make me feel a bit dizzy.

"Hey, you okay? Katie?" I turned my head at the sound of my brother saying my name.

"Yeah, I guess. I think the nerves are finally setting in." I replied.

"If you're sure. Look, I know this can be a scary place. I still remember my first day here and yes, it was scary. But you have an advantage that I didn't."

"And what's that? I'm not sure having my big brother at my school is what I would call an advantage."

"Well, yes I'm here, but also the entire glee club. I know you say you aren't going to involve yourself, and that's your choice, but just know that _because_ you are my sister, that makes you family to them too. We will always have your back. With that said, it's also important that you let me or one of them know if there is a problem otherwise we will have no way of knowing that you need assistance. Deal?" He asked while holding out his pinky.

"Deal," I said as we connected our pinkies. "I need to get my backpack out of the backseat and test before heading in. You don't have to wait, I can lock up the car if you want to get in and try to find Kurt."

"That's alright, I'll wait. Besides, don't want you getting lost to your first class," he replied with a smirk. While he was talking, I was taking care of business, pricking my finger and all that goes along with it. _90. That's strange, it should have been quite a bit higher than that by now. _I looked down at my insulin pump, checking the settings. _It's only set to deliver 1 unit per hour. I hope I'm not having an off day, that would just be the icing on the cake. _ I decreased my delivery amount to 0.5 units per hour. _That should do it. _

"Hey, everything alright?" my brother asked, eyebrows already furrowed in a worried expression.

"Yeah, just running a little on the low side today, just had to reset my pump. Don't worry, I know that look all too well. I'll be fine. I have my cell, I will text or call you if I need to, okay?"

"Alright. Shall we head in?"

"Now or never, right? I guess it would have to be now as I'm pretty sure never is not an option." With that said, we headed towards the entrance of the school. Blaine already had his class schedule and knew where his classes were. I was supposed to receive mine in homeroom this morning. Blaine showed me where my homeroom would be before we set out to our lockers. Ours just happened to be conveniently located close to each other. I heard whispers around me, and when I looked up from my locker I saw Kurt, Blaine's boyfriend, approaching us.

"Morning, Blaine." Kurt greeted my brother. "Hey Katie, welcome to McKinley. Are you excited?" he asked.

"Honestly, I'm more excited for what's to take place after school. Still working out the nerves right now. How was your weekend? I didn't see you much around the house."

"Ah, well the weekend went slow because I wasn't at your house. Dad needed some extra help at the shop and I had lots of planning for my outfits this week. Couldn't have Mr. Handsome over there distracting me," he stated with a smile. I looked over at Blaine and noticed him blushing. _How cute, he's still so head over heels for Kurt, the littlest things still make him blush. _

"I see how it is. Blaine can be rather distracting, I mean with a goofy face as his, how could you not become distracted." I smirked.

"Hey! What I do to you, sis?"

"Love you big brother!" I hollered while heading towards my homeroom. The room wasn't far, but it felt like it. While walking in, I felt eyes starring into the back of my head as I passed desks. I found an empty seat towards the back, somewhat close to the back door of the class room. As I was settling in, I heard some commotion at the front of the room. Glancing up, I noticed a tall, olive toned guy with a Mohawk. He walked to the back of the room, passing me, and taking the seat right behind me.

"Hi there, name's Puck. What's yours?" he asked.

"Katie. Puck, is that a nick name?"

"Ya, short for Puckerman. You look familiar, have we met before?"

"No, this is my first year here and I most definitely would remember a name such as yours."

"Hmm, and I thought I would be memorable for my charm." He smirked. "Katie, what's your last name?"

"Anderson, why?" I glanced curiously at him, while turned halfway in my seat.

"That's why you are familiar. You're on the soccer team right?"

"Yes. How did you know that?" This guy was totally freaking me out. He already knows more about me than anyone at this school and he's only been sitting here for less than a minute and I have never said anything.

"I was helping Coach out with the roster. Each player has an i.d. card that the refs check before each game against each player. I was putting the pictures with the name, that's why you looked familiar."

"I see. Well since you know that I am on the soccer team here, do you play for any of the teams?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. I also play soccer, but also on the football team as well as glee."

"If you're in glee, than you probably know my brother."  
"Who's your brother?"

"The short, dark haired one with tons of gel, Blaine."

"Oh I know Blaine, he's an awesome dude. He's not really into sports but he works out with us a lot. Something about the competition or something."

"Yeah, that's him. It was nice meeting you Puck. Maybe we will see each other in another class." I was really hoping. He's really cute and actually seems somewhat interested in me. Not very common for a girl who likes to wear track pants and t-shirts, preferring comfort over beauty. The teacher walked in as we ended our conversation. _So far, so good. Maybe this school won't be so bad. Not that I will ever admit that to my brothers. _ After receiving my class schedule for the year, it seems I have Spanish, American Lit, Algebra, Wellness (aka gym), and Biology, with a free period thrown in there. I hear the Spanish teacher is good so that shouldn't be too bad.

Last class of the day was biology. However, I was met with a surprise walking in, there in the middle of the room seated at a table was none other than Puck. "So Puck, I see we meet again. I didn't know we would have any other courses together, I mean with you being a year ahead of me and all."

"Well, you see miss smarty pants, this would be an AP class for you as a freshman. As a sophomore, this is the typical science class."

"Right, well as long as this class goes as quickly as the others, all will be good." The teacher walked in then, and began right into her lecture. I felt a headache begin to set in, but tried to push it aside until after class. _Maybe it's from the left over nerves from this morning. Just get through this class and I will be in my comfort zone. _ About half way through the class, while taking notes, I felt my hands begin to shake. _Oh this isn't good, please Lord not now, not on my first day of school. _Puck must have picked up something was wrong when my pen dropped from my hand.

"Katie, are you alright? You don't look so good."

"I'm fine, I just need to step out for a minute, I think," I whispered to him. I saw in the corner of my eye, Puck raising his hand, and a muffled voice asking if it was okay that he helped me to the nurse's office. After being given permission, I felt a hand on my shoulder and the slight tugging of my other arm.

"Come on Katie, let's get you out of here," he said into my ear. I faintly remember nodding my head and standing, heading out towards the hall. We walked a few feet away from the classroom, I barely noticed that Puck had both of our bags in his hand. I felt myself begin to sway a bit, Puck helped me down to the floor, sitting against a wall. "What can I do to help you? You're really pale and I can feel your hands shaking. What's going on, Katie?" I could hear the worry in his voice.

"Blaine." That was all I could muster out in my haze. Luckily, Puck has Blaine's cell number in his phone.

"Hello?"

"Blaine, it's Puck. Listen, I'm out in the hall with Katie, I think she might be sick. She's asking for you." I could hear Puck's side of the conversation.

"Okay. Do me a favor, stay with her. I will be there in just a moment, I need to grab my bag. Where are you guys?" Blaine asked.

"We are just down the call from Ms. Norman's class room," Puck replied, "and I'll be here. I wouldn't leave her alone like this."

I could feel my eyes begin to droop. It seemed like forever, although I'm sure it was just a few minutes, I could hear Blaine's running footsteps down the hall.

"Katie, Katie, stay with me sis." I felt nudging on my shoulder as I opened my eyes. "What's going on Shorty, you don't look to hot."

"think I'm low," I mumbled out. "So tired."

"Where's your meter, I don't see it in your bag." I could hear Blaine rummaging through my pack.

"Locker, left it there after lunch, forgot to put it back in my pack. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, I have one of your extras in my bag." He replied while pulling it out of his bag, along with a juice box and some crackers. I could feel him lift one of my fingers before pricking it with the lancet. I heard a distant beep short after. "Shit," Blaine mumbled under his breath as the number 55 flashed back at him. "Katie, I need you to drink this for me, okay. You're sitting at 55, we got to get that number up before you drop any further. " I could hear the worry thick in his voice.

"What's going on, do I need to get the nurse?" Puck asked, sounding very confused.

"No, not yet anyway. Katie is diabetic. Her blood sugar is too low, which is why she's not so coherent and why she is shaky at the moment. It's important that we get her blood sugar up so she doesn't lose consciousness," Blaine replied while holding the straw in my mouth while I took sips of the juice.

"Does this happen all the time?"

"No, it's usually under pretty good control, but occasionally when she's been stressed out for a long period of time, or she's sick, or sometimes it just happens no matter what she does she will go low or high for most of the day. I think I heard Cooper say that she was low when she woke up this morning. I know she ate breakfast and lunch today so either her pump is delivering too much insulin or she is just having an off day." After mentioning the pump, I could feel Blaine removing it from my pocket. _She's only getting 0.5 units an hour, I don't get it. I guess she's having an off day._ I felt Blaine slide the pump back into my pocket. Soon after, I had finished the juice and was coming around a little more.

"Thanks Blaine, I'm sorry. This isn't how I wanted our first day to be," I told him.

"It's alright sis, I'm glad Puck was able to get a hold of me. How are you feeling?"

"A little dizzy but slightly less shaky." I felt Blaine place a cracker in my hand.

"Try some crackers, once you feel okay enough, we'll head towards the glee room. Classes will be over soon and I don't want you to get trampled on."

"Okay, I think I will still be good for practice. It starts in about an hour," I stated, after glancing at my watch.

" We'll see what your levels are first, the last thing we need is you passing out on the field." With that said, I felt him help me to my feet. "Puck, do you mind grabbing her pack, we are going to the glee room, feel free to come."

"Sure, no problem. I feel kind of helpless at the moment, I have no idea how to help you out here."

"You've done a lot Puck, thank you. " I replied to him. With that, we headed towards the glee room.


	3. Chapter 3

Human: Chapter 3

Next thing I knew, we were in the glee room, Blaine and Puck sitting down on either side of me. I could feel the gazes of both boys on me. Looking up at each of them, I could tell they were just worried, and I think Puck was a bit scared of the situation. _Well I guess this was one way of impressing a new boy that I like, way to go. _

"I'm fine guys. If you stare at me any harder you may start shooting laser beams through my head."

"You're my sister, I will always be worried about you, you know that," Blaine replied while pulling the meter out of his bag again. "Now, give me your finger, let's see where you're at," he stated while I have him my carefully selected middle finger. "Well, I see you're whit is back in tact, thanks," he smirked while pricking my finger. Within a few seconds, a beep could be heard. "80, good. If you hit at least 120 before practice and promise me you will come off the field if you start feeling low you can go to practice. If you aren't, you are staying in here with me during glee rehearsal and we will go home from there."

"Fine," I replied while rolling my eyes. "Puck, thanks for taking care of me earlier. You were more help than you realize. I could have passed out and ended up on the floor of the classroom before anyone realized something was wrong if you hadn't been paying attention."

"I'm glad I could help, besides, it's hard to pay attention in class when there is a cute girl sitting right next to you." I blushed at his comment, while I noticed Blaine now rolling his eyes. "At least now, I know some of the signs to watch for in case it happens again. I can start carrying snacks and stuff too just in case, this way Blaine doesn't have to be called every time."

"Thanks very kind of you Puck, but not necessary. I do keep snacks and things in my bag and locker and my meter is usually with me in my bag as well. Today has just been an off day and I usually know sooner when my sugar levels are dropping so I can do something about it. I think the headache I was ignoring at the start of class was my first warning sign. I shouldn't have ignored it. I know better than that, I just wasn't thinking."

"Alright. Blaine, I will be skipping glee today because I promised coach that I would help with the first practice. I'll be out on the field, I can keep an eye out on Katie if it would make you feel better about going to practice today."

"Sure, Puck, that sounds good, thanks. I still don't want her practicing unless her numbers are at least 120 though. She'll be working hard out there and it would only cause her to be lower if she isn't high enough to start. Speaking of which, Katie, do you think we should either turn off your pump or disconnect it for now. I noticed your delivery rate is only set to 0.5 an hour and you were pretty low for that. I know you take it off for practice anyway."

"Not a bad idea, Blaine. Yeah I think I will, it will only help my levels to go up faster and stay there anyway." _Why didn't I think of that before, duh. _ I turned my pump off and unclipped it from the insertion site on my abdomen. After doing this, I put the pump in my back pack.

"What exactly is your pump, I mean what does it do? If you don't mind me asking," Puck asked.

"I don't mind Puck, but if it's alright, I will let Blaine explain it to you while I go get ready for practice," I answered while finishing up the crackers that Blaine had given me in the hall, and glancing up at Blaine for confirmation that it was okay.

"Sure Shorty, go get ready and we will test you again before you head out the field," he smiled back at me. I shook me head in agreement while leaving the glee room to head to my locker to get my soccer bag and heading off to the girl's locker room to change. "Puck, her pump is an insulin pump. It basically takes over the function of her pancreas when it comes to producing and delivering insulin. For whatever reason, when she was ten years old her pancreas stopped working. Her sugar levels were through the roof, I remember the doctors saying it was over 900. Her goal range is 80-120. Depending on what her activity level is or what she may be doing gives an indication of what we want her range to be so that she isn't running too high or too low. Anyway, the pump has a few parts to it. The insertion site on her abdomen is actually where a small canula, or tube, that is inserted just under her skin. There is another piece that connects into it that is connected to tubing that is attached to the pump itself. The pump is filled with insulin and can be programmed to give a certain amount consistently through the day and also has the ability to bolus, or give an extra amount for a one time occurrence if needed."

With all this information, Puck had a clear look of confusion on his face. "Why does she need the insulin anyway?" he asked.

"Well, without it she would die. There is a no cure for diabetes, just a treatment. Insulin is her lifeline so to speak. If she didn't get enough of it, her sugar levels will rise. If they are too high she can go into diabetic ketoacidosis, or DKA. That's when her blood becomes acidotic, which is very dangerous, and her organs can begin shutting down. On the flip side, if she is getting to much or she is just running low, it could put her in a coma if not treated enough. That's why she has to test her blood frequently throughout the day to constantly monitor what her levels are. She is usually in tune enough with her body that she can tell if she is high or low, sometimes it just sneaks up on her before she realizes what's going on. Kind of like today."

"Are the symptoms different when she is high or low?"

"Yes. She tends to have a headache whether she is high or low. When she is low, she tends to become very pale and shaky. Those are her main signs. She may become hungry or dizzy or have a combination of symptoms. If she is high, her attitude changes, she tends to become depressed. She goes to that bathroom a lot, her body tries to rid itself of the extra sugar through urine. She drinks a lot, constantly. She tends to feel nauseous when she's high as well," Blaine explained.

"Wow, you really know a lot about this stuff."

"Comes with the brother territory. Especially so after our parents died. We only have each other now, so we look out for each other. She's a stubborn one though so I really have to read in between the lines. She tries to keep things hidden, like if she isn't feeling well, so that Coop and I don't worry about her."

"I see, I can understand that. I'm sort of like that with my mom. It's just the two of us and I'm always worried that she is working herself too hard. Can I be honest with you for a second?"

"Sure, what's up? Sounds serious," Blaine replied.

"Please don't hate me when I say this, but I think I'm falling for your sister. I know that we just met today, but I feel drawn to her, like I need to protect her. I can feel my heart beat faster when ever she is around. When the time is right, would you be upset if I asked her to be my girlfriend?" Puck nervously shifted in his seat."

"Oh, I don't know. That's kind of a big deal. I guess it would be alright, I know that you are good guy and not quite the womanizer that you are made out to be. Just know that if you ever hurt her, it won't be just me you will have to be worried about, but Cooper too. Which quite frankly, Cooper alone, I wouldn't wish upon anyone."

"Fair enough," Puck replied while shaking Blaine's hand. "I think I'm going to go get ready for practice, I will see you after glee."

"Sure," Blaine responded with a grin. _I think Puck could be good for Katie, get her to trust someone other than me and Coop, maybe even realize that not everyone is going away or will be taken away from her. _No longer had the conversation ended Katie returns to the glee room.

"Alright, just so you know I waited to test again so you could see for yourself that I will be fine."

"Well, lets do this then," he said while pulling the meter out and repeating the process of testing her sugar, only this time, allowing Katie to do it on her own.

"There, see, 130, I'm good to go. I will see you in about 2 hours Blaine. Since you have Puck out there too, don't worry, if something happens, I'm sure he will call. Cooper packed stuff in my soccer bag so I'm prepared."

"Alright, go, I will see you in a little while."

_**Alright readers, reviews are love, so let me see 'em! **_


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